These Small Business Owners Have Perfect Family Names for Their Businesses

These small business owners were destined for their business, literally.

Back in the Middle Ages when the concept of one having a last name (or surname) was being developed, names were commonly based on a person’s occupation, hometown or something they were known for: John the baker, Sam the carpenter, Ivan the terrible, William the conquerer, etc. But as professions have evolved from the simple, such as carpenter or miller, to the more complex, such as flight attendant or software analyst, the whole name-connected-to-career thing has come unglued.

There’s a word for people who have names that sync-up with their business: Aptronym

Some people have names that sound extremely appropriate for their occupation. There’s even a word for it: aptronym (or aptonym). Maybe the name and work connections are just coincidences, but it’s common enough for psychologist Carl Jung to include the phenomenon with his interest of a wide range of similarities dubbed “synchronicity” almost a century ago.

Whether coincidence or destiny, some users of SmallBusiness.com love finding people who have perfect names for their occupations. If you know of others, send them to us at: [email protected]